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Life, Thoughts

October Coffee Date

October 30, 2019 By Robyn 18 Comments

I wasn’t planning on writing a post this week because we are moving Friday and I’m speaking on Monday in Atlanta at            Chick-Fil-A so it’s very likely the fullest week I’ve had in a really, really long time…but I felt like I wanted to put some words out into the internet this morning so here we are.

It’s 6:29am on Tuesday morning and my apartment looks like it’s been ransacked. There is stuff everywhere. So I’m hiding out in our room because it’s the corner of our tiny apartment with the least amount of chaos typing away while laying in our bed. I’m someone who cannot function in clutter and mess, but this week (and for the next few weeks) this is reality. Cheers!

Packing up for this move feels easier than it did when we moved from New York to Boston even though we now have a baby. Even though we went from a one bedroom in NYC to a 2 bedroom here in Boston, this apartment is actually smaller and we’ve had a baby (which = more stuff) and so I’ve had to tightly manage what stuff comes into our apartment. Because of that, it just feels like overall we have less things? Maybe I’m hallucinating…

Because baby sleep over here is imploding. Like….he’s almost 11 months, but I actually have a newborn again and we are waking 2-3 (sometimes 4x) a night and on a good night he only nurses once and most nights we end up co-sleeping by 1 or 2am because I’m straight up tired. And then I’m like, “co-sleeping is the best ever!” while at the same time thinking, “this isn’t sustainable!” because I need a few moments in the morning to myself before he wakes for my sanity and right now that isn’t happening with us in the same bed. So, because I feel like the parenting equivalent to, “what do you do for a living?” is …”how is he sleeping?” that’s my response. I’m up more now that I was at 6 weeks and I’m convinced that the idea of babies consistently sleeping through the night by ____ months old is just a myth and babies will sleep through the night when they do. So, I’m throwing in the towel on trying to figure out this mystery and instead just going to pour another cup of coffee and roll with it. Caffeine, bless.

I walked into the shower with my AirPods still in yesterday. So there’s that.

I’m almost done with all the credentialing paperwork for my new job and that feels like a huge win because I’m not sure I can fill out one more form or call up Medicare one more time. And I’m feeling really excited to return to more regular NP work versus the per diem work I’ve been doing since Cal was born. The NPWH conference was really affirming for me that yes, I love this work and I’m ready to work outside the home a couple days a week. Feeling that affirmation has helped settle my nerves about leaving Cal.

If you’re moving or will ever move in the future…I was googling “how to making moving easier” because that’s what I google when trying to simplify my life…? and came across a tip that said to color code your boxes with colored tape and then put a piece of tape on the door frame or entryway of each room so the movers know exactly where to take each box. I thought it was genius!

I made this chicken chili in the instant pot last week and it was quite possibly one of the easiest recipes ever. When instant pot or slow cooker recipes require 20 minutes of chopping vegetables, I no longer consider that a quick & easy recipe. But this one only requires you to chop one onion and then you just dump in the remaining ingredients.

We walked up and down the streets of Beacon Hill on Saturday since it was a gorgeous fall day and every time I’m in that neighborhood I cannot get over the historical charm. I also think we are leaving Boston at worst time because fall here is pure magic.

Alright, it’s 6:56 now and I’m going to go pour a second cup of coffee, eat some breakfast and do something with the bags under my eyes. Share bits of your reality in the comments!


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Filed Under: Life, Thoughts

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Comments

  1. Moni says

    October 30, 2019 at 6:29 am

    Hey there Robyn and Robyn-followers…
    I just wanted to say how much I love your blog and appreciate the insight you give us into your life.
    I was wondering if you follow any blogs on the internet (not facebook or instagram but real old school blogs) that you can recommend. I love reading about your life, your thoughts, intuitive eating… anything really that is relatable to women trying to be strong, loving and not afraid to show the good and messy.
    Maybe someone knows something 🙂

    Reply
    • Emily says

      November 1, 2019 at 9:04 am

      I love Robyn’s blog! I also really love CarrotsnCake by Tina Haupert and HB Unfiltered by Heather Bergeron!

      Reply
    • Aleisha says

      November 1, 2019 at 5:22 pm

      Peanut butter runner or peanut butter fingers are great to follow! Peanut butter runner has more eating and day in the life/weekly expertise posts
      I find carrots n cake too heavily sponsored for my personal liking.

      Reply
    • Susanne says

      December 22, 2019 at 3:15 pm

      I there! I don’t mean to seem too self obsessed but I’m trying to run a quite old school blog about my life after moving to Ireland. Feel free to visit if you want!

      Reply
  2. Kristin says

    October 30, 2019 at 8:34 am

    Around 11-12 months, my baby was also getting up 2-4 times a night and I couldn’t believe that was my life. He never, before that, slept through the night, but it hadn’t been THAT bad.
    At 12.5 months, I did old-fashioned cry-it-out and it worked in 2 days. There’s a lot to be said for that method!
    Good luck with the move! We’ve done…7? of them and I know it’s a lot.

    Reply
  3. Holly says

    October 30, 2019 at 11:13 am

    I’m RIGHT there with you. My son turned one last week and the past two months have been the worst sleep of his life (and mine…). It’s rough. It’s got to end sometime right??? Good luck with the move. And I agree Boston is incredible this time of year!

    Reply
  4. Susie B says

    October 30, 2019 at 1:44 pm

    I feel you. My daughter will be 8 months on Friday and we somehow went from her sleeping from 8p-5a without nursing to her waking up 2-3x a night. I am a ZOMBIE. And I’m convinced that trying to figure out baby sleep issues (aka googling) just makes it even worse, haha

    Reply
  5. Kris says

    October 30, 2019 at 1:54 pm

    I’m sure you’ve already had this mentioned, but Taking Cara Babies is an amazing resource about baby sleep and her blog/Insta/programs helped us immensely! Good luck mama. Those wake ups are TOUGH

    Reply
  6. Allison M Seybold says

    October 30, 2019 at 2:22 pm

    Hey Robyn! I love catching up on your coffee conversation posts, and your Daily Eats are great inspiration for me! I’m a stay-at-home mom to two boys, one is two and a half and one is 6 months old. The two-and-a-half-year-old is finally into a great sleeping and napping pattern but the six month old is all over the place… hang in there! And, Good luck with the move!

    Reply
  7. Katelyn says

    October 30, 2019 at 4:27 pm

    Hey Robyn!! Have you considered hiring a sleep consultant? I’m sure you’ve had that suggested to you before, but we did and it was the best money we ever spent – with hardly any crying! I went from being up 4+ times per night to one night time feed and it’s been so good not only for my little guy, but for me to feel more rested too! I highly recommend if you can. It’s a bit of a financial investment, but honestly, what is your sanity and health worth? That’s how I justified it 🙂

    Reply
  8. Cari says

    October 30, 2019 at 6:00 pm

    I love reading your posts because they always resonate with exactly what I’m going through! You literally take the words right out of my mouth. My daughter just turned 6 mo and her sleep is the worst it has ever been. I don’t want to scare you, but she went from 1-2x a night to 4-6x after we moved a month ago. They know! Last night was our worst, yet. I think the only sleep I got was when I co-slept on accident. She was up EVERY hour. I finally broke down and purchased the Taking Cara Babies course, even though I’m totally not game for crying it out. Her method seems to be very, very gentle and loving (and I’m all for that). Anyways, something to think about! Just know, you’re definitely not the only mama up during those wee hours in the night. 🙂 It truly is the newborn stage all over again, maybe even worse!

    Reply
  9. Andrea says

    October 30, 2019 at 8:42 pm

    Two words … sleep consultant! It felt silly at the time but turned out to be the best money I ever spent. Baby sleep is SO CONFUSING and with all the conflicting info out there sometimes it just helps to have someone tell you exactly what to do. Coming from the mother of a child who was up 5-6x a night, after working with a sleep consultant she has been an incredible sleeper for the last 3 years!! She falls asleep on her own in her own bed and wakes up 10-12 hours later – through sleep training we taught her an invaluable skill that has been so essential to our sanity as parents. 🙂

    Reply
  10. Carley says

    October 30, 2019 at 8:59 pm

    Oh bless you! My daughter didn’t sleep through the night until she was 14 months (she’s 19 months now) so I feel you! I finally caved and turns out she would only cry for like a minute or two as she was switching between sleep cycles 🤦🏼‍♀️ If only I had known it’d be that easy. I can tell you it does get better and you will feel human again and not feel like you’re just fragments of yourself. As far as working, in my opinion working a day or two has been recharging and makes me a better mama.

    Reply
  11. Rachel says

    October 31, 2019 at 5:35 am

    Whoa, I can relate! I don’t have a baby, but I’m moving out of home for the first time, from our little city (Canberra) to Sydney. I’ll be living on my own for the first time, and starting my first full-time job and I honestly don’t know whether I’m standing on my head or my heels. The last few weeks have been utter chaos, trying to find accommodation (a share house for me!), get all my stuff together, buy furniture and tie up loose ends here before I go. I leave tomorrow and start work on Monday so my reality is swinging between zombie-like confusion and epic stress, all while feeling guilty for letting these last few days with my parents and without a 9-5 job slip by. So I guess I’m just saying I feel you, and I’m sending all my best wishes and prayers your way!

    Reply
  12. Megan says

    November 1, 2019 at 2:01 pm

    Good luck with the move!!! Also you are making me want an instant pot 🙂

    Reply
  13. Aga says

    November 2, 2019 at 11:13 am

    I cannot believe I’ve just found your site. It’s perfect! Thank you for every post, I can’t stop reading!

    Reply
  14. Ashley says

    November 10, 2019 at 12:29 pm

    With my 14 month old I have just determined that EVERYTHING related to sleep is a 2-3 week phase. Sleeping well? Don’t count on it lasting longer than 3 weeks. Horrible sleep? 3 weeks before that changes. Between teething, colds, stuffy noses, and just toddler weirdness, there is no constant for us with sleep. That’s okay…that’s why God gave moms coffee!

    Reply
  15. Susanne says

    December 22, 2019 at 3:21 pm

    Oh, the thing about moving. I hope I won’t have to do it in a while or that we’ll have our stuff enough organised so that it’ll be easier. We moved abroad about a year ago and gosh, how stressful. We had black or white tapes on our boxes, because we were moving some of them to our rental house and some to a storage unit. That was extremely helpful, actually.

    Reply

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A non-diet dietitian and nurse practitioner helping women find peace with food, accept their natural body size and heal from hormonal issues and period problems.

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I have yet to experience postpartum myself, but I've had many clients and readers that have been through that season of life. Or perhaps you are currently living through the postpartum period. Every woman's body is different, therefore every woman's experience after giving birth will be different. What works for one woman, might not work for the next. While one woman might go through postpartum and adjust to newborn life quiet seamlessly, another woman might find it much more difficult. She might need the support of medication, therapy, extra help and many other things. One way is not better than the other - they are simply two different ways of navigating the postpartum period. I hope this post helps you better care for yourself, whatever that means for you. There's no right or wrong way to care for yourself as a mom or your new baby.

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🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻💃🏻💃🏻💃🏻 two babies are asleep at the same time in their beds (and not on me) for the FIRST TIME IN 7657 DAYS and dear lord I could cry tears of relief straight into this latte and bowl of chocolate chips bc I woke up this morning exhausted and weary and told Nick I didn’t want to parent today 🤣 Not even calling this self care. It’s sanity right now. And even if it lasts 5 minutes it will be 5 minutes of freaking glory. p.s. yes that brick is crooked bc v uneven floors are part of the charmed package of this old house
Learning over and over again in this season that f Learning over and over again in this season that feels unsettled and chaotic and longgggggg that sometimes, you just need the viewpoint of a toddler to remind you that the seemingly insignificant things & moments really are....straight up magical. And that yes, these mundane days are packed full of goodness & beauty if I keep my eyes fixed on what actually matters.
Spent two hours at Lowe’s this morning and wow, Spent two hours at Lowe’s this morning and wow, wowww 🤯 Asked at least six people where to find something and their opinion on all the options bc holy decision fatigue. Nursed my newborn on the floor of the paint aisle. And BLESS my new contractor friend Matt I found in the lumber section that pushed my cart around and helped me avoid the mistake of buying exterior wood for some DIY bathroom shelves.
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I’m giving all our bathrooms a DIY makeover and I couldn’t be more of a rookie. So shoutout to all my Lowe’s buddies and YouTube 😜 You’re making this happen.
We are now officially homeowners. WUT? We didn’t We are now officially homeowners. WUT? We didn’t plan to close on a house 10 weeks after having a baby, but here we are. And we are so, so grateful.  And I’m also terrified. We’ve moved three times and lived in three different states since we got married three years ago. After six years spent living in New York City and Boston, moving back to Charlottesville was really, really hard for me. I cried a lot those first six months because my heart ached for the northeast and for city life. I wanted to pack up and go back to Boston ASAP. It felt so different and so quiet here and at times, very lonely. Even though it felt like the next right step, I second guessed our decision A LOT.
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But here we are 10 months later ready to continue investing in this neighborhood we’ve come to love. And this community of people that have become so dear. Ten months later and it feels so, so right. And although committing to settling down here for a good bit feels really scary to me, it also brings so much peace to know we aren’t moving again anytime soon. We are here to plant and grow. And raise our babies in this house as we make it a home. It’s also really fun to have one of your best friends be your realtor. We love you @kelli.teter.nesting 🤗
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Now, to see if we make it out of this kitchen renovation all in one piece 🤪
my go-to breakfast these days is two fried eggs in my go-to breakfast these days is two fried eggs in ghee with sautéed spinach (also in ghee) and an english muffin with more ghee + some sort of jam on half for that sweet & savory combo. we discovered these local english muffins (from The Bread Basket) and they are doughy and delicious and we are obsessed.
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I’ve found that I need a solid source of protein and lots of fat for breakfast to keep me full while breastfeeding this time around vs with Cal, I was so into big bowls of pb & chocolate chip banana oatmeal. just goes to show our bodies know what they need and change cravings accordingly. also, just a psa: go pick up the maple butter from @traderjoes bc it is bonkers 🤤 and lastly, shout out to my husband bc a lot of mornings he is making this bfast for me while I nurse & try to pull myself out of bed - don’t for a moment think I’ve got it together 🤪
I’ve had many thoughts rolling around in my brai I’ve had many thoughts rolling around in my brain of if/how to use this platform in a way that aligns with how I want to live my life. I’m finding it tricky to discern that when 90% of my use on this app is for professional purposes. But I’m not sure if even professionally, it makes sense for me. Because I feel more aligned with what matters to me when I’m not regularly present here.  I’m not really sure what things will look like moving forward, but for right now I’m here to share with you that I somehow found some spare minutes between newborn & toddler life to write a post with some semi-coherent thoughts on life lately. 🤪 You can head there by clicking the link in my profile.
I’ve been completely disconnected from social me I’ve been completely disconnected from social media and that’s been vital for me during this tender postpartum period of transitioning from a mama of 1 to 2. But today, I’m bopping on briefly to share how Teddy entered this wild world with you - if you’re into a lengthy, detailed birth story, the link in my profile will lead you to the blog post 💙
Theodore “Teddy” Lars Nohling joined our famil Theodore “Teddy” Lars Nohling joined our family at 12:48am on Wednesday after a quick and swift labor & birth at home 💙 Thank you Father for another healthy baby boy & your abundant, tender love for us. What an undeserved gift.
Very grateful to be carrying another baby past his Very grateful to be carrying another baby past his due date, but also....LET’S GO DUDE. Still over here eating dates (check out the @ebbirth article on the research showing dates can help ripen (aka soften) your cervix, reduce the need for medical intervention in labor and can overall, improve birth outcomes) drinking red raspberry leaf tea and sleeping as much as possible with a 19 month old running around. And also trying to survive July in VA without public pools or splash pads bc it is BLAZIN HERE (and I’m a wuss with the heat 🤪)
#AlignPartner A huge plus of transitioning from ti #AlignPartner A huge plus of transitioning from tiny-apartment-city-living to house living is this screened in porch. This little oasis sold me on renting this house when we moved from Boston to Virginia back in November. I dreamed about this becoming our outdoor living room for at least half the year (because also, summer comes earlier and stays later down here - which has a its pros and cons 😆)  During Cal’s afternoon nap, I set up shop out here with my computer + something refreshing to drink and get a little bit of work done before my brain turns to mush and/or a find myself napping instead of working. 🤷🏻‍♀️ I can only drink so much water during the hot months before I’m over it so I’ve been mixing it up with either seltzer + juice, iced tea or @alignprobiotic’s new Kombucha On-the-Go powder sticks - all you do is mix one of the packets into ice cold water and stir. Then sip!  With quarantine life, we aren’t on-the-go much these days, but it’s still nice to have a nonperishable drink option always around. Flavor wise, it’s like a fizzy iced tea with a zingy, refreshing lemon ginger flavor.  I think it’s important to know that not all probiotic supplements are created equal. They all aren’t backed by evidence, but the Align brand is and could be something helpful for you if you feel like you need some digestive support - but talk to your healthcare provider first. I try to incorporate probiotics into what I eat - and that mostly comes in drink vs food form. Tell me how you’re staying hydrated in the comments ...because these days, it’s the little things 🤪 #AlignProbiotic **Use as Directed
Lunches for the past month or so have been some re Lunches for the past month or so have been some rendition of a sandwich + chips + fruit. SUMMERTIME 😎I’ve switched to open faced only bc there just ain’t much room left in there for food at 38.5 weeks 🤰🏻90% of the time at the end of a meal, no matter how “small” the portion, I’m feeling stuffed and like the food is in my throat (just what you wanted to read on this lovely Tuesday afternoon 🤪) but my point here is...intuitive eating doesn’t mean find-the-perfect-fullness and eat-only-when-hungry. Sometimes it means eating when you’re not hungry and feeling overly full often and trying to eat foods lower in fiber and higher in calories.
Found this photo on my camera roll today from a wa Found this photo on my camera roll today from a walk I took a month or so ago. Between quarantine and spending my days with a toddler, life is much less hurried and a lot more mundane these days. But those two things are helping me to stop & notice and to chill out on checking things off my to do list and instead just being present with whatever is in front of me. I want to have the curiosity & wonder my 18 month old has as I go about my day - with my surroundings and people I encounter and really, everything. Life is way more meaningful that way. Ending my evening with that reminder and a white chocolate chip cinnamon blondie covered in vanilla ice cream before I go take an Epsom salt bath and read.

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